Why would a group of hotel investors want to purchase a bank? For Chirag Patel, Mehul Patel and Mital Patel, it's a little bit business and a little bit personal.

The three investors in Lewisville-based hotel company NewcrestImage bought North Dallas' American Bankin a deal that closed Friday for an undisclosed amount. The bank has around $55 million in assets.

NewcrestImage is regarded as one of Dallas-Fort Worth's many business success stories. It was started by three immigrant families — three sets of two brothers who came to the U.S. and started their own hotel companies. The company owns 28 hotels with another 15 properties currently under construction.

NewcrestImage made a name for itself when it opened its first dual-branded hotel in North Texas in 2013.

Dual-branded hotels allow owners to cut costs by leaning on a shared staff to serve two experiences to customers. The practice emerged after businesses began struggling amid the economic downturn of the late 2000s, according to the company.

NewcrestImage will open its next dual-branded hotel in Frisco this June that will become part of a four-hotel campus in the mixed-use development of Frisco Station.

From left: Mehul Patel, Chirag Patel and Mital Patel

(Courtesy Chirag Patel)

For Chirag Patel, now the chairman of American Bank, the acquisition of the small bank represents a story come full circle.

"As immigrants who came to this country, who worked hard, we've been rewarded with many blessings ... this investment is humbling in one way and energizing in another," Patel said. "It comes with the responsibility to give back to our community and our families."

American Bank, which has existed for nearly four decades, has one location in Dallas-Fort Worth, but Patel says that could change. The group plans to focus on loans for small businesses and individualized support that he says is hard to find with larger lenders.

"Loans are looked at as loans, but at the end of the day there's a warm body — a person — behind them. We plan to bring that personal touch to the lending space," Patel said.

According to Patel, the bank's operations will remain separate from hotel operations.